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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29440485">Missed you, Saved you, Got you by my Side</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissMoonshine/pseuds/MissMoonshine'>MissMoonshine</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Losing, Missing, Searching, Finding [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fate: The Winx Saga (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fix-It, Worldbuilding</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 17:22:13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,354</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29440485</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissMoonshine/pseuds/MissMoonshine</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to 'Lost you, Missed you, Found you again'</p><p>There are things that need to be done:<br/>They have to break Saul out of prison. They have to get Alfea out from under Rosalind's thumb. They have to take care of the Burned Ones once and for all. They have to find out more about the Dragon Flame. They have to put their world back together.<br/>Not necessarily in that order.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Losing, Missing, Searching, Finding [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2157858</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>57</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Missed you, Saved you, Got you by my Side</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Upon popular request. And I mean it. Literally every single review on the first story asked for a sequel - the story already had a title by the third one, by the way. So first of all: Thank you, everyone, for your support - you're fantastic!<br/>Now, I stand by what I said back then (it wasn't even three weeks ago and it feels much longer...), life is busy at the moment so I am not sure how much time I will actually find to write. I'm more than surprised, actually, that I managed to write anything for this before the middle of March, so there you go. And no, I'm not mad, this fandom has been lovely so far, so I'm very happy to indulge you (and maybe myself because once I started considering it, I actually did want to write this sequel myself).</p><p>On another note, those of you who have watched the Winx Club way back when, you might find that there are a few characters and plotlines that will be familiar. Because frankly, I don't see why I should invent a whole knew background when I have been given a wonderful palette to work with? xD<br/>I still hope everyone enjoys this first chapter - lots of worldbuilding and background, but we have to start somewhere, right? Again, thank you all very much for the support on the first story!</p><p>Obviously, I don't own Winx or Fate or any of the characters, as far as I know, they belong to Netflix and Rainbow and I'm just having a bit of fun.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>‘Where are we going again?’ Bloom’s voice was hushed, though she did very little to hide her annoyance. Her mother rolled her eyes.</p><p>‘I thought we established all of that. You helped plan it all, didn’t you?’</p><p>‘Will you both be quiet?’ Farah hissed, turning around to glare at them. When her eyes fell at Bloom, though, her gaze softened. ‘We’re almost there, just a little longer.’</p><p>‘Great.’ Instead of scolding her for her tone, Farah just turned back and started walking again, leaving her sister and Bloom to follow her. Vanessa gently bumped her daughter’s shoulder and gave her an encouraging smile and with a huff, she started following her aunt. That still had a weird ring to it, even after several weeks of living with it as a reality. Even after Terra and Musa had shown up and Terra had called her ‘Aunt Farah’ too, not once caring about the propriety of being her student. </p><p>Now, almost two months after her mum had called her home, they were finally putting their plan in motion. If she was honest, Bloom had thought they’d just...break into prison, get Silva and then...well. She hadn’t really thought about how they would do that or how they’d handle Rosalind afterwards. But she hadn’t expected that Aunt Farah would drag her and her mum through some thick Otherworld forest in the middle of the night to go and find some mysterious library. </p><p>The only ones who had even heard of it before had been Terra and Stella, and neither of them had known very much about it. Just that it was ‘neutral ground’ and very old. Somehow, Bloom had still thought that it would be in a city and not in the middle of the woods.</p><p>Despite having listened to her aunt’s warning about proper shoewear and a warm jacket, following her through the underwood was getting harder with every passing minute. Only Farah herself, who was leading them, didn’t seem at all fatigued, keeping her pace steady and fast, and once again Bloom wondered what her life must have been like as a soldier to be so relentless now.</p><p>The other thing that wouldn’t get off her mind was her insistence that Vanessa should accompany the two of them. Neither of the other girls was allowed to come, for reasons she hadn’t been willing to share with them. She had with Vanessa though, they always seemed to whisper about things now.</p><p>Just as Bloom was about to start contemplating how strange it was to share a house with your best friends, your parents and your headteacher, Farah suddenly stopped, a hand raised.</p><p>‘We’re here,’ she said with a smile. Confused, Bloom looked around and her mother next to her didn’t seem to fare much better.</p><p>‘I hate to disappoint you,’ Bloom began slowly, ‘but we’re still in the middle of the forest?’</p><p>‘Ah, apologies.’ Farah rested a hand against the tree she had stopped next to and mumbled something in a low voice. For a moment, nothing happened, then the old, thick tree glowed and the faint outline of a door appeared in it’s trunk. Without even so much as sparing her sister and niece a glance, Farah reached for the handle and gently pushed it open to let them step past her.</p><p>Bloom wasn’t sure what she had expected to find inside a tree but she thought that maybe, she shouldn’t be as surprised as she was when she stepped into a room that held no resemblance to a tree at all. Behind her, Vanessa gasped in wonder as she pushed the hood of her cloak back to be able to have a better look around. </p><p>It was utterly silent for a moment, only the sound of Farah shutting the door disturbing the quiet. Then, she too lowered her hood and gestured for them to follow her through a door at the far side of the room. How she knew which was the right one, Bloom didn’t know. There were doors all around the room, up to the ceiling so far above them that she could barely see the beams holding it up. It was eerie, silent and peaceful, gloomy but not discomforting. Somewhere, light was falling in, perhaps from above, but Bloom could see where the light was coming from. She wondered what exactly this place was but didn’t dare disturb silence and instead just followed her aunt.</p><p>The three sharp knocks echoed through the heigh room and made both Bloom and Vanessa flinch, but her aunt motioned for them to be patient. It only took a few seconds, or perhaps it was several minutes, it was impossible to say in this strange room, before they heard steps approaching and then the door was opened from the other side.</p><p>‘I was wondering when you would show up. Please, do come in.’</p><p>‘Thank you, Concordia.’ Farah gave the woman a smile and they followed her through the second door, this time leaving Concordia to close it behind them. In a way, Bloom thought, she was the epitome of the cliche librarian. Tiny, shorter even than her mum, blonde hair twisted up into a neat updo, big spectacles and an almost conservative blue dress. But there was something else about her and Bloom just couldn’t gauge what it was, but it made the hair at the back of her neck stand up, telling her that while she might seem nice, Concordia could easily be a danger. </p><p>For now, however, she seemed nice enough as she led them through a dark entry hall and past several high shelves stuffed to the brim with files and finally into an open, round office with a cosy fireplace and bookshelves all along the walls.</p><p>‘Have a seat,’ she said and gestured towards the fireplace, then waving her hand, her eyes flashing grey, to have their cloaks hang themselves on the rack by the door and teapot on the small table pour out four cups of hot steaming tea. Farah seemed completely unfazed as she picked the saucer and cup from the air and to Bloom’s surprise, even her mother didn’t seem too disturbed by it. It was hard, she thought, to remember that while she had no magic herself, her mother had grown up in a household with three other fairies and that some things - like self pouring teapots - might be something she remembered from her childhood.</p><p>‘I take it you’re here because of Rosalind?’ Concordia asked, breaking Bloom’s reverie and she focused on the woman who was intently looking at her aunt.</p><p>‘Yes.’</p><p>‘You’re not here to hide.’</p><p>‘No. We need your help. We need information.’</p><p>‘Well, you’re in the right place for that.’ For the first time, a smile crept onto Concordia’s face and idly, Bloom wondered that it was impossible to say how old she was. ‘Information is what we have in spades. But you’re looking for something specific, aren’t you, Farah?’</p><p>‘We are. What do you have on the Burned Ones? Specifically on their creation?’ Farah hesitated. ‘And I need you to get us everything you have on the Dragon Flame.’</p><p>At those last words, Concordia’s eyes widened and then snapped at Bloom, fixing her with her eerily owlish stare. ‘You,’ she whispered. ‘You’re the one who was born with it, aren’t you?’</p><p>‘Yes?’ Bloom half answered, half asked because really, did she know the answer to that question? Or was that just yet another gear in the machinery of Rosalind’s manipulations? But Concordia’s smile just widened.</p><p>‘Good.’ She paused, turned back to Farah. ‘Rosalind was here too, a good twenty years ago now. Looking for that exact information.’</p><p>‘What did you tell her?’</p><p>‘Nothing. I didn’t handle her request, Astrun did. But she didn’t give her very much.’</p><p>‘Why wouldn’t she?’ For the first time, Vanessa spoke up and Concordia glanced at her before she gave a slight shrug.</p><p>‘She couldn’t. Rosalind might be powerful, but her family can be traced back to the old days of Eraklyon. She doesn’t have old blood.’</p><p>‘Old blood?’</p><p>‘Old blood,’ Concordia confirmed with a nod. But the three of you all have it, Bloom.’</p><p>Bloom couldn’t remember that anyone had actually introduced them, they had just followed along, but clearly, introductions had been unnecessary on Concordia’s part because she already knew exactly who they were. She glanced at her mum, who looked only slightly baffled, then at her aunt who, once again, seemed quite unfazed and gave a shallow smile.</p><p>‘When we say “old blood”,’ she explained slowly, ‘we mean those from families who once called the Ninth Real home.’</p><p>‘But there are only eight realms.’ At least, Bloom though, that was what everyone had explained to her.</p><p>Concordia nodded once more. ‘There are. Now. But a long time ago, there were nine realms. Before that, even, we considered Earth, Tir na Og, the First Realm, but many without magic began to blame magicfolk for their ailments and for everyone’s safety, most of the portals that connected both worlds. But after that, there were nine. Andros, Callisto, Eraklyon, Koria, Lynphea, Melodia, Solaria, Zenith - and Domino.’</p><p>‘Right. So what happened to this ninth realm?’ No one had ever mentioned it before, and Bloom had to admit that her curiosity was piqued now. She had a nagging feeling, though, that her mother’s presence - which had made no sense to her before - had something to do with this whole old blood thing. </p><p>Concordia and Farah shared a look, then Concordia shrugged, eyes fixed on Bloom. Without looking away, she waved a hand through the air, her eyes once again glowing - more blue than grey this time - and silhouetted images appeared on the wall above the fireplace. As she started to speak, her voice calm and low, they started to move, as if they were a shadow play performed for children.</p><p>Only, it was not a children’s story at all.</p><p>‘A thousand years ago, there were nine realms. Every realm had old powers they celebrated and the people of Domino were protected by the Dragon Flame. It had, in ancient times, been given to the rulers of Domino by the dragons themselves and it was handed down through every generation. Instead of birth order, the child that inherited the Dragon Flame was meant to be the next ruler and no one ever contested that, because it was the Dragon Flame’s power that protected the realm.</p><p>‘But then, there was one Queen who gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, and both of them had been given the power of the Dragons. She degreed that they should one day rule Domino side by side, but the Queen grew to be very old and the daughter herself had children while the son stayed childless.</p><p>‘So, when one of her granddaughters showed to have inherited the power of the Dragon Flame too, the Queen decided that her daughter was the true heir of the throne and that she alone should rule after her death. Oh, her brother did not like it. He grew bitter and angry and when his sister offered to still assume rule together, he denied, claiming that only he, as the eldest child, should be king.</p><p>‘But that, the council refused to accept, and one night, the brother disappeared. He was not seen again for many years and his sister’s heart was broken for she feared he had died. But he had not, he was still very much alive, hiding and plotting. He had found refuge with some Blood Witches in the highest mountains of Domino, and with them, he began to work on his revenge.’ There was a small pause as Concordia took a sip of her tea, and they all stayed perfectly still, almost holding their breath, as to not disturb the tense atmosphere her voice had created. ‘After a decade or more, he was ready. He made his way to the capital of Domino to give his sister an ultimatum.</p><p>‘You see, for years there had been reports of villages on the outskirts of their realm that were being raided, people who were just disappearing and those who went looking for them never returned. The Queen had sent out her army, yet they had come back in tatters and spoke only of black monsters, charcoaled and burned, that had hunted them.’</p><p>‘The Burned Ones,’ Bloom whispered and Concordia flicked her eyes at her.</p><p>‘Yes. The Burned Ones. The brother took them to the gates of his sister’s palace and demanded her to hand him the throne, lest she wanted him to destroy her entire realm. She tried to reason with him, but he had long succumbed to the madness of the Blood Witches and his own hunger for power. So, when she refused, he retreated and killed hundreds of her people in his wake.</p><p>‘The other eight realms send their armies to help Domino, because it had been a time of peace, but then the brother and the Burned Ones began to cross borders and attack the other realms too. So, the Queen called her brother back into her castle to once again try to reason with him. The war between them had gone on too long, a decade already, it was not right to have their people suffer for a spat between them. Oh, he laughed at that and agreed - and then killed her husband and children in front of her eyes because they, they were the reason he had been bereaved of his rightful throne.</p><p>‘He had hoped, like the Blood Witches had said, that she would go mad and lose her power in her grief but she did not. So, he left once again and the Queen, indeed slowly succumbing to the madness of grief, came up with a devious plan. But too late she realised that she had been tricked, that the Blood Witches who had offered their help to destroy the Burned Ones were the same three who had helped her brother create them.</p><p>‘Desperate, she called into her chambers what was left of his council, and told them to be outside Domino’s borders by nightfall, to take as many of their people with them as they could. Then, when they were all gone, she went back to the three Blood Witches waiting for her to complete their ritual.’ It was almost sudden when Concordia stopped and leaned back a little.</p><p>‘There are no records of what happened between the Queen and the Witches,’ she said, ‘but some of the Council did leave speculations. The Witches had told them that their spell would destroy the Dragon Flame cinders inside the Burned Ones, but it would have extinguished the flame inside the Queen that was still protecting the realm. Perhaps something went wrong, but most seemed to think, at the time, that the Queen had them evacuate the realm because she knew the consequences of manipulating the spell would be dire.’</p><p>‘What happened?’</p><p>‘Domino was destroyed. It was powered by the Dragon Flame - a heat source.’ Silently, Concordia retrieved a shiny globe with all realms of the Otherrealm. She tapped onto a large white patch in the middle of oceans.</p><p>‘That’s Domino?’ Bloom asked, wide eyed. ‘It’s...frozen?’</p><p>‘Yes. Whatever happened that night, it turned Domino into an ice desert, unable to sustain any form of life.’ She paused, shrugged. ‘Of course, it is all but a legend now -’</p><p>‘But there’s truth in all legends,’ Vanessa interrupted softly and Concordia nodded. Looking at her daughter, then back at their host, Vanessa frowned. ‘If all of that is true...how did Bloom end up with the Dragon Flame?’</p><p>Bloom squirmed a little when suddenly there were three piercing gazes fixed on her, but Concordia once more leaned back in her seat and took a sip from her tea. ‘There is no real documentation of that last meeting with the Queen, of course, but there are notes in the margins of accounts of something she only told her closest advisors. That with her children dead, there would be no one to inherit the Dragon Flame through blood but that when the time was ripe and it was needed again, a child of Domino’s blood would be born with it.’</p><p>‘When the time was ripe?’ Bloom gave her a disbelieving look. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’</p><p>‘Well, they weren’t exactly clear on that one. None of this - at least of what happened towards the end of that first war against the Burned Ones - is documented properly. One of the few real documents we have is a list with names of everyone who fled Domino before it’s demise because the head librarian at the time thought it would be a good idea for future reference.’</p><p>‘Wait, are you saying there’s a list of names with people who could be my parents?’</p><p>‘No, sweetheart, there’s a list of names from a thousand years ago,’ her mum corrected and looked at her sister. ‘Unless there’s a way of finding out which one you’re related to, I’m not sure that’s going to help?’</p><p>‘The list has been charmed,’ Concordia interrupted before Farah could respond, ‘to show lines that have died out differently. I think. I’m not sure when someone last checked it.’</p><p>‘Can I see it?’</p><p>‘I suppose you have the right to.’</p><p>‘Concordia,’ Farah cut in sharply, her thoughts already somewhere else. ‘What does Rosalind know of this?’</p><p>‘I am not sure. Certainly not the whole story. She knows the legends, the ones that have long been forgotten, because those are written in storybooks here. The whole story, though, that is only written down once, in the Domino section of the library and both its doors and its knowledge are sealed for those without old blood.’</p><p>‘Do you have any idea why Bloom would have been in Aster Dell?’</p><p>‘In Aster Dell? The mountain village?’</p><p>‘Yes.’</p><p>‘No. Were you born there?’</p><p>‘Rosalind said that they were Blood Witches living there, so I don’t think so?’ Bloom gave a helpless shrug, but Concordia now frowned.</p><p>‘How could there have been a village of Blood Witches in the midst of Solaria with no one taking care of it - the proper way, Farah.’ She reached over to give Farah’s hand a squeeze, but Farah shook her head at the question.</p><p>‘That, I do not know either. Rosalind never even mentioned that they were Blood Witches to us - we had no idea.’</p><p>‘I know. It makes no sense - I’ll look into that for you, once you’re gone.’ She stood up. ‘You also wanted information on the Dragon Flame, didn’t you? Well, whatever Rosalind found out, I will make sure that the three of you leave with more information than she could possibly dream of. Come on.’</p><p>‘Where are we going?’ Bloom asked, this time following Concordia closely, leaving the other two to trail after them. They were speaking in hushed voices anyway, careful that Bloom wouldn’t overhear, so she focused her attention on the librarian. </p><p>She gave Bloom a slight smile and pushed open a set of high double doors. ‘The library.’</p><p>The library of Alfea, Bloom decided, had nothing on this one. It was impossible to say where the rows of bookshelves ended in the dark at the end of each corridor, just like the tops were obscured in darkness. Only the corridors they were walking were lit, by floating lights - like the ones Stella tended to conjure - dancing along the shelves.</p><p>And the shelves themselves...they looked like they came right from a fantasy film, Bloom thought, old and wooden and heavy, creaking under the weight of the hundreds of thousands of books on them, yet sturdy and solid, reassuring that they would never break under it. Each book was shelved by a system, they must be - how else would anyone find anything? - and meticulously clean. It startled Bloom; so far, the only other living being they had seen was Concordia, but she couldn’t possibly take care of all of this alone.</p><p>‘How many people work here?’ she wanted to know.</p><p>‘Not as many as before. Rosalind was very persuasive.’</p><p>‘Rosalind?’ She made no effort of hiding her confusion. ‘What did she have to do with...a bunch of librarians?’</p><p>Concordia sighed. ‘We’re librarians all right,’ she said, ‘but we’re also all masters of our powers. Discipline, knowledge, integrity, wisdom - that’s what makes you go up the ranks here. We don’t just work in the library - it’s not just a job. It’s…it’s a life. We’re scholars, here, and Rosalind thought that she could use that. She convinced some of us to join her fight and they did.’ She swallowed and Bloom bit her lip, already knowing what she might say next. ‘None of them came back. We’re no soldiers, we’re scholars. Yes, we know all the magic used for battle - but we aren’t trained for fighting. We live our lives to preserve knowledge, encased in the library’s safety -’</p><p>‘So this place is defended?’</p><p>‘Mhm, yes. Before all the war planning was done at Alfea, that all happened here.’ She pointed down a dark corridor. ‘The library was always neutral ground between the realms, existing slightly out of sync with the First World and the Otherworld. Whatever quarrels between the realms, they were left at the threshold of the library so that the realms could work together to defy a common enemy.’</p><p>‘So, if we had to hide -’</p><p>‘You could in theory hide here indefinitely, yes. But you would forever live in an asylum you could never leave and unless it’s your calling to be a librarian here, you wouldn’t be happy - look there -’ she pointed at another set of double doors just a few meters down one corridor, these ones with a vaguely familiar looking crest burned into them, ‘- that part is the library of Solaria. Domino’s should be somewhere around soon, I think the library knows we’re looking for it. I felt it shift,’ she added when Bloom shot her a look at that. Then, suddenly, a wide smile appeared on her face and she turned towards Farah and Vanessa, who had been following them, focused on their own conversation. ‘We’re here.’</p><p>‘I haven’t been here in a long time,’ Farah said softly and ran her fingertips over the door they had stopped in front of. It seemed to be thrumming with energy, as if it was just waiting to be opened - perhaps it was; was ready to finally reveal the secrets it had held for a milenia to those who needed them.</p><p>‘Neither have I.’ It still took Bloom by surprise whenever her mother mentioned that she had been to places in the Otherworld; places she herself was unfamiliar with, had often never even heard of. Vanessa gave her daughter a warm smile and put her arm around her shoulders. ‘Maybe you should do the honours?’</p><p>‘You should,’ Farah agreed and Concordia nodded, making Bloom frown. The honours of what, exactly? As if she had read her mind - perhaps she had - her aunt smiled at her. ‘The doors have been sealed by the people of Domino. They can only be accessed by proof that you are of the old blood - may I?’ Bloom swallowed, but nodded and gently, Farah took her hand in hers and ran one finger across her palm. It was like cutting yourself with a very sharp knife - she didn’t even realise she was hurt until she saw the blood. </p><p>Still very gentle, Farah placed her bleeding hand on the door handle and pulled back. For a moment, nothing happened, then the entire door began to glow before fading again. Then, the lock clicked and the door sprang open.</p><p>Wide eyed, Bloom pulled back her bleeding hand - only to realise that it had stopped bleeding, the skin smooth and pale once more, as if nothing had ever cut through it before. Squeezing her shoulder, Farah pushed the door open and they all stepped into the lost library of Domino.</p><p>‘How are we supposed to find anything in here?’ was the first thought Bloom managed to voice once she had begun to take in the room. There was no end in sight, it seemed almost as big as the main room they had come through. </p><p>To her surprise, it was her mother who answered, her voice soft as she laughed. ‘It’s a magical library, sweetheart. You use magic to find things.’ It was astonishing, really, how easily her mum had slipped back into that, just accepting magic. Bloom still didn’t know most of the details about what had happened for her mum to, well, not be a fairy, or how she had ended up in the normal world - the First Realm, she corrected herself - but she had changed a lot within the few weeks they had all been staying at their house.</p><p>‘There’s a reading lectern, isn’t there?’ Farah’s voice pulled her from her thoughts and curiously, Bloom looked towards the dimly lit center of the room. The shelves were arranged like the rays of a sun, away from a round space in the middle, and right there, at the circle’s center, was indeed a reading pult. Which, great, but that didn’t really help them much, right? </p><p>Questioningly, she glanced at her aunt, who seemed to understand her confusion and motioned for her to step behind it. ‘We have these in Alfea too,’ she explained with a patient smile, ‘because they make finding things much easier. Put your hand there - yes, exactly, and then state either a title, autor or a topic you want to read about.’</p><p>‘Ahm, okay? I guess I want to read about the topic “the Dragon Flame”?’ she said hesitantly, but received only three encouraging smiles. Before she could add anything else, though, a rustling echoed through the room, followed by...footsteps. </p><p>Concordia’s eyes widened, her face somewhat panicked. </p><p>With a soft ‘thump’, three books landed on the lectern in front of Bloom. Old books. The really, really old kind. One was even covered in scorch marks everywhere.</p><p>‘We have to go,’ Farah interrupted suddenly, throwing a glance at Concordia, who just nodded.</p><p>She pointed at the three books. ‘You better take those.’</p><p>‘I thought you weren’t allowed -’</p><p>‘I’m making an exception for you, Vanessa. Bloom, take good care of these. They’re incredibly valuable.’ She gave a grim smile, then waved her hand and the books shrunk, each the size of Bloom’s palm. </p><p>She hadn’t even realised that her mum and aunt had brought their cloaks until she was handed one and Farah took the books from her, slipping one in each of their pockets. Concordia waited until they were ready, then took them back out of the Domino room, the hurry evident in her step. Behind them, the doors fel shut with a loud thud and they suddenly found themselves in darkness.</p><p>Bloom’s eyes were wide, she wasn’t sure what was going on when her aunt flicked her wrist and a small ball of light popped into existence, floating between them. The steps were coming closer.</p><p>‘It’s Hagen, isn’t it?’ she asked, her voice strangely soft and something sad flickered across Concordia’s face as she gave a silent nod. Farah sighed and reached to squeeze her hand, then stepped between her niece and sister. ‘I know the way out.’</p><p>‘Good. Take care of yourselves.’ She gave them one last, tense ark smile before turning on her heel and disappearing into the endless darkness between the bookshelves. The only thing that told them that she had ever been there were the fainting sounds of her steps as she moved away from them, closer to whoever else was hidden in the dark. </p><p>‘Let’s go,’ Farah whispered, a hand on both Bloom’s and Vanessa’s arms to gently pull them along. ‘And quietly.’</p><p>Their way back to the entrance of the library seemed to take forever. Or perhaps it was only mere minutes before they arrived back at the small entry hall and their perception of time was merely thrown off.</p><p>Neither of them said a word when they slipped back into the room with the doors, then out through another though Bloom couldn’t fathom how her aunt knew which door was the right one because she had absolutely no idea. Suddenly, they found themselves in the woods again and still, all three of them stayed silent, strangely shaken by whatever had - hadn’t, really - happened back  inside the library. Quietly, they made their way through the forest, the walk strangely eerie compared to the one on the way there earlier. Every sound in the night seemed louder than before, or perhaps that was just nature after the unnatural quiet that tended to hover between bookshelves. </p><p>The sky was already pink when they stepped through the portal back into the First Realm, despite the darkness they had stalked through just moments ago. Even in winter, californian nights weren’t as long as they were further north and, in the grand scheme of things, Solaria was further north. Andros wasn’t, but Alfea and Solaria were, so December nights were long and dark even when it was long past sunrise in Gardena. </p><p>‘I’m exhausted,’ Bloom sighed when they finally, finally, reached the house and stepped through the protective barriers her aunt had put up around it. </p><p>‘I think we all are, sweetheart.’ Vanessa tried to stifle her yawn in a smile, but didn’t exactly succeed, so she simply padded her daughters back. ‘You should go catch some sleep before - oh, I think they’re already awake.’</p><p>‘Bloom! Aunt Farah! Mrs Peters!’ Of course it was Terra who greeted them, who had already made breakfast for everyone, beaming at them from the kitchen. ‘Did everything go well?’ She wanted to know, gesturing with her wooden spoon for them to sit next to Bloom’s dad. Smiling, Vanessa and her daughter both leaned down, each pressing a kiss to his cheeks in way of greeting. Farah, on the other hand, stepped around to Terra and squeezed her arm.</p><p>‘It did. I’m sure Bloom will tell you all about it later.’ She smiled, then leaned over to peer at the frying pan. ‘What have you got there?’</p><p>‘Oh, proper English breakfast. You know, like dad always does for holidays?’ A shadow flitted across her face at the mention of her father, but then she composed herself again, smiling at the four other people in the kitchen. ‘Would you like some before you go to sleep?’</p><p>‘You’re the best, Ter.’ Bloom was already loading her plate in typical teenage fashion. ‘I’m starving.’ Of course she was, they all were. It wasn’t exactly a surprise, they had been up and walking all night, they needed sustenance. </p><p>‘We’ll all have breakfast now,’ Vanessa agreed and gave Terra a thankful smile. Of all the girls staying with them, she and Musa were the only ones she allowed in the kitchen, but Terra was by far the better cook. As she had just proven again now. ‘Oh, this is fantastic. Thank you, Terra. Farah - have some too. We’ll get some rest and then we’ll have a look at those books?’</p><p>‘Fine.’ Farah gave a small huff, her mind already at all the things they had to do now.</p><p>Visiting the library to get some information on the Burned Ones and the Dragon Flame had been crucial, yes, but had it not been of tactical advantage, it wouldn’t have been the first thing on her agenda. No, that would have been Saul. But once he was freed, there was no way they would still be able to sneak around the Solarian woods without detection to get into the library; everyone would have had their hackles raised and there would be guards and patrols. No, it had to be done first, whether she liked it or not. </p><p>Their plans were already made, though. They’d regroup, now, consider all their information - and then they’d strike. She still didn’t like it, involving her students, half trained children still, but they had no other choice. And their plan was good. It would work. She would just have to be patient a little longer.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Anyone remember Concordia, the pixie in Alfea's library? And Hagen, the armourer from the first movie?</p></blockquote></div></div>
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